Justice News

Wilkes Co. Man Sentenced To A 20-Year Prison Term For Possessing And Producing Child Pornography

STATESVILLE, N.C. B U.S. District Judge Richard L. Voorhees sentenced yesterday Tony Luke Brewer, 25, of Hays, N.C. to 20 years in prison on charges of possession and production of child pornography, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Judge Voorhees also ordered the defendant to serve a lifetime of supervised release and to register as a sex offender upon release from prison.

John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division joins U.S. Attorney Rose in making today’s announcement.

“Today, we’ve removed a monster from the folds of our society. Brewer’s massive child pornography collection contained images and videos depicting extreme and violent sexual abuse against children, some of whom were infants, which he shared online with other pedophiles,” said U.S. Attorney Rose. “But Brewer did not stop there. He solicited young victims online and enticed them to engage in sexually explicit conduct, which he captured and stored on his computer. Brewer is a predator who belongs behind bars, where he can no longer victimize another young child.”

“Luke Brewer tried to conceal the evidence of his twisted and disturbing criminal activities online. When the safety of our children is at stake, the FBI will not stop until we uncover those vile offenders who seek to do harm with their demented behaviors,” said Special Agent in Charge Strong.

According to filed documents and statements made in court, Brewer was a member of, or attempted to become a member of, multiple Internet websites through which he and others posted thousands of messages containing images of sexual exploitation involving pre-pubescent children. The websites’ users employed advanced technological means in order to undermine law enforcement’s attempts to identify them.

According to court records, from at least May 2012, Brewer registered with these websites and uploaded images of child pornography or chatted online with other users. Court records show that on one such website, Brewer described himself on his user profile as “a young pedo” who “loves meeting new pedos.” On September 24, 2014, the FBI executed a search warrant at Brewer’s residence, seizing his laptop computers and other storage media. According to court records, forensic examination of the seized items revealed that Brewer possessed thousands of images and videos of child pornography, including material involving infants and prepubescent minors engaging in sadistic and masochistic or other violent conduct.

Court records indicate that, in addition to possessing child pornography, Brewer had engaged in multiple chats online with minor victims from different states. According to court records, Brewer knew the victims were underage and induced the victims to engage in sexually explicit conduct, which he captured and stored on his computer.

Brewer is currently in custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.

The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cortney Randall of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte was in charge of the prosecution.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice, aimed at combating the growing online sexual exploitation of children.By combining resources, federal, state and local agencies are better able to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue those victims.For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov